Palestinian official urges Arabs to 'break' Israel borders

BEIRUT- A senior Palestinian official in Lebanon, Munir Maqdah, on Tuesday urged all Arabs to march across Israel's land borders with its neighbours, amid new plans to break the Israeli sea blockade on Gaza.
"Civil society and Palestinian factions in Lebanon are looking into forming a 'Return to Palestine Flotilla' and organising marches to break into Palestine not only from Lebanon but also Jordan, the West Bank, Gaza and all Arab countries," Maqdah, a leader of the mainstream Fatah party, told AFP.

A Palestinian pharmacist serves customers in Gaza City.

"We hope the Lebanese authorities will facilitate the process so that we can launch this effort very soon," Maqdah said, adding that he had received letters of interest from thousands of people.
Protests erupted worldwide after Israeli naval commandos last week stormed a Turkish-led aid flotilla headed for Gaza in defiance of an Israeli blockade, killing nine activists on board.
"Turkish blood has now put Israeli occupation under siege and Palestinian and Arab blood will do the same," Maqdah said. "The Palestinian cause is in need of more effort and blood."
His comments came days after two pro-Palestinian groups launched a campaign in Lebanon to raise funds for a ship they plan to sail to Gaza this week carrying educational supplies and journalists.
The non-governmental groups "Free Palestine Movement" and "Reporters Without Limits" said they hoped the boats would set off for the blockaded strip at the end of the week.
On Friday, the head of Lebanon's Shiite militant group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, called for a "Freedom Flotilla II" to break the Israeli-imposed siege on Gaza.
Nasrallah, whose group fought a 2006 war with its arch-foe Israel, said it was important to join "the humanitarian struggle" to break the blockade, but insisted he had no plans to ignite a new war with the Jewish state.
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